Former WWE star Maven has narrated an incident that happened at a live event which caused WWE Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels to shout at him behind the scenes.
Maven recently talked about various wrestlers who have yelled at him in a video on his YouTube channel, with Michaels being the first on the list. He recalled how WWE wanted him to better his skills inside the ring which is why he was paired with Michaels. But, things didn't go quite to plan for Maven during a match at a live event, which resulted in him facing the wrath of "The Heartbreak Kid."
"On this night, he was working with me and I was extremely green. This was early in my career, I definitely didn't want to make myself look stupid but moreover, I did not want to make this man look stupid. At this point, I didn't know he didn't like me. I had hopes that there could still be a level of mutual respect between one another and if I had those hopes they were all dashed the night we stepped into Albuquerque, New Mexico. Now, the reason I remember and tell you the exact city that we were in is the city actually plays a role in why Shawn yelled at me," saidMaven.
Maven noted that Albuquerque's high elevation can make the cardiovascular system work harder, which could cause a wrestler to feel out of breath, which he was warned about by WWE management.
The former Tough Enough winner Maven stated that the reason Shawn Michaels was angry at him was because of a move that he botched.
"As the match progresses I find myself in a spot and once again, imitation being the most sincerest form of flattery, I was on my back and I was trying to do a move that The Rock and [Michaels] does a nip up. It was pretty easy for me to do during this time. I mean, I could do it usually with or without hands, [it] didn't matter. I was athletic enough that I could pull the move off at sea level," recalled Maven.
He failed after having no air in his lungs due to the altitude, falling on his backside. Michaels wasn't too pleased with the botch even if it was at a live event and proceeded to berate Maven backstage.
"Once the match was over, once the crowd got a good chuckle out of a rookie not landing a simple move, we get backstage and Shawn laid into me. He told me, if you're not 100% sure you can do and land a move, don't do it," he said.
The former WWE star said that he largely kept quiet, but did offer an explanation that Michaels wasn't keen to hear. He added that he felt bad for putting the WWE Hall of Famer in that situation and conceded that Michaels was right to be mad at him.
